C & J Fertilizer v. Allied Mutual Insurance Co. case brief

C & J Fertilizer v. Allied Mutual Insurance Co. (Sup. Ct. of Iowa, 1975); CB 484; Notes 49

• Facts: P had ins. policy for burglaries, robbed w/only tire tracks as evidence. D claim not “burglary” as defined in K requiring visible signs of entry.
• Terms: burglary insurance with provision that restricted coverage to claims with visible evidence of forced entry on the exterior (to eliminate coverage of inside jobs).
• Breach: P didn’t know about the provision requiring exterior evidence; there was a third party burglary with only inside evidence.
• Issue: Should P be able to recover for burglary loss despite K?
• Holding: Court said P assented to general K, not specific provision so can recover. Judgment for P.
• Rule: The objectively reasonable expectations of applicant re: terms of insurance K will be honored even if policy provisions would have negated them.
• Note: Under ProCD, the court would have said that there is clear language for definition of burglary and this loss does not fit within this definition.